Recipes for Building Materially Diverse, Functionally Transparent and Expressive Electronics

Transcription

1 RecipesforBuildingMateriallyDiverse,Functionally TransparentandExpressiveElectronics HannahPerner Wilson ThesisProposalfortheDegreeofMasterofScienceinthePrograminMediaArtsand SciencesattheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology,Fall2010 Advisor LeahBuechley,AssistantProfessor High LowTech,MITMediaLab Reader MitchelResnick,LEGOPapertProfessorofLearningResearch LifelongKindergarten,MITMediaLab Reader NeriOxman,AssistantProfessor MediatedMatter,MITMediaLab 1

2 ABSTRACT Technologyhasbecomeincreasinglycomplexandubiquitousinourlivesandwhile consumerelectronicsmaybewelldesignedandfunctionaltheyarebothaesthetically andfunctionallyimpersonal.thestandardizedapproachwehavetakentoprototyping, buildingandmanufacturingelectronicshasshapedthelookandfeelofelectronic artifacts. E Textiles,thecombinationofelectronicsandtextiles,hasshownusthatbyintroducing anewpaletteofmaterialsandtoolsforbuildingelectronicswecanbuildagreater diversityofartifactsthatarenotonlyaestheticallyintriguingbutalsofunctionallynovel andoftentheresultofapersonalencounterwithelectronics.inattributingthediverse resultsofe Textilessolelytothenewpaletteofconductivefabricsandthreadsinvolved inmakingthemweoverlooktheimpactthattheshiftinprocesshashadonelectronics namelyashiftfromtheestablishedpracticeofassemblingelectronicsfromakit ofparts,toaprocessofcraftingelectronics. Inapplyingcraftpracticetoelectronicsweallowforamoreindividual,continuousand directapproachtomanipulatingcircuitryandcomponents.thisapproachrequiresboth manualskillandanintimateknowledgeofthematerialsinvolvedthatpopular breadboardingandpcbdesigntechniqueslack.whilethereismuchbenefitinthe efficiencyandspeedwithwhichwecanprototypeanddesignelectronicsfromakit ofparts,weareultimatelyconstrainedtothesystemwithinwhichthepartsfunction.by introducingakit of No Partsapproachtocraftingelectronicsfromadiversepaletteof materialsandtoolsibelievethatwewillbeabletocreateagreaterdiversityof electronicartifactsthataremoreunderstandableandpersonal. Mythesisexplorestechniquesthatallowustocrafttechnologyfromanewpaletteof materialsandtools.iintroducerecipesthatfunctionasintroductionsaswellasdetailed referenceresourcesinallowingustobeginbuildingfromthisnewpaletteofmaterials andtools.iwillpaygreatattentionthattheserecipesarereadasnon rigidlearning opportunities,thattheyintroducepartialsolutionsandhandoverthecontroltothe maker,ratherthanimposingtheverykindsofconstraintsi mtryingsohardtoavoid. Theserecipeswillbedocumentedonawebsiteanddisseminatedthroughworkshops.I willevaluatemythesisonhoweasilyandintuitivelyworkshopparticipantsareableto workwiththenewsetofmaterialsandbuildelectronicsthatarebothfunctionallyand aestheticallyexpressiveoftheirindividualcraftprocess. 2

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...2 RELATEDWORK...5 PROBLEM...6 ResearchQuestion... 6 APPROACH...6 TheKit of No Parts... 7 HYPOTHESES...8 MaterialDiversity... 8 FunctionalTransparency... 8 Expressivity... 8 DELIVERABLES...9 Recipes... 9 Website...10 Workshops...10 EVALUATION MaterialDiversity...11 FunctionalTransparency...11 Expressivity...11 RESOURCES TIME FRAME REFERENCES

4 INTRODUCTION Todaythemajorityofconsumerelectronicsaremass manufactured.standardization andakit of parts[10]approachtoproductionhavemadelarge scalemanufacturing fast,efficientandaffordable.materialsaremadeworkable,theirflawsremovedto renderthemuniformandpredictable.componentsaredesignedtobepartofacoherent systemofpartsandtosuitselectproductionmethodssuchasinjectionmoldingand vacuumforming.thismethodofstandardizedproductionor workmanshipofcertainty [Pye,1968],allowsustobuildtechnologiesthataremorecomplexthananyonehuman couldevermakethemselves.theresultsofthisprocessdemonstratethepowerofblack boxing[pugin,1853]anddivisionoflaborbuttheresultsalsoillustrateagrowing ignorancetowardshowtechnologylooks,feelsandfunctions. Inparticulartherehasbeenapronounceddevelopmentintheideaofabuildingasakitof partswhoseindividualfunctionsaretestedandknown,whosecostandperformancehas beensetandwhoseusecanbespecifiedinonecountryandusedinanotherandeveryone concernedknowswhattoexpect. [CraftandtheTuringTestforpracticalthinking,Peter Dormer,TheCultureofCraft,1997] Constructionkitsmaketechnologyaccessible.Assystemsofmodularpartstheylower theentrybartoscience,engineeringandtechnologydisciplinesandallowustobuild ourowntechnologies.theirmodularityallowsforthemtobeassembledandalmostas easilydisassembledinordertoiteratethroughaseriesofdesigns.butthismodularity comesatthecostofconstraint.thepartsofaconstructionkitfunctioninsidemodular systemsandassuchthedesignsrealizedwiththesekitsarelimited. Craftontheotherhandisassociatedwithbuildingasaformofpersonalexpression. Craftmaterialsaremoreoftenpraisedfortheiraesthetic,decorativeandmaterial qualities,thantheirabilitytoconveytechnologicalconcepts.wegenerallyconsider craftedartifactstobelimitedonlybytheskilled workmanshipofrisk [Pye,1968]and thepersonalknowledge[dormer,1997]oftheindividualcraftsperson.whilecrafthas cometoembracetechnologyforproduction[annsuttonquotedindormer,1997,p145], communitybuildingandsocialnetworking[torray,2009][rosner,2010],therearefew approachesthathavebroughtusaframeworkinwhichtocrafttechnologyitself. Acraftobjectoftenrevealsmuchabouttheskillandthetechnologyusedtomakeit.The relationshipbetweencraftprocessandproductislikelytobe,ifnotquitetransparent,then atleastrelativelyaccessibletomostofus.thereispleasurefromwearingorusing somethingwhosecreationwecanbothadmireandunderstand.inaworldwherewehave losttouchwiththebusinessofmakingthings,thecraftobjectrestoresforusthe connectionbetweenmakingandusing.bycontrast,designconceals.notonlydowenot understandhowdesignedobjectsaremade,wedonotunderstandhowtheywork. [Helen Rees,Patternsofmaking:thinkingandmakinginindustrialdesign,TheCultureofCraft, 1997] 4

5 RELATED WORK Iseethefollowingfourfieldsofrelatedworkmostrelevanttomyproposal:(1) Learning by doing(2)doityourself(diy),(3)craftand(4)materialsintechnology. Mostnotableeducationapproachestolearning by doingincludefriedrichfröbel s selectionofmaterialsthatpromotehands onlearninginkindergarten[kafaietal., 2010],JeanPiaget sconstructivisttheoryofknowingandseymourpapert sintroduction tocomputersasinstrumentsforlearning.mitchresnickcombinestheeducationalvalue ofmakingthingswiththedesignofconstructionkits[resnick&silverman,2005]for kidsthatincludethepicocricketandlegomindstorms.jaysilverproposesamaker Methodology[Silver,2009]that catalyzesparticipantsintocreatingtheirownworld. Outsideofeducation,kitsareoften plugandplay buildingblocksformakingthings. Phidgets[Greenberg&Fitchett,2001]andArduinoareexamplesoftoolkitsthatenable sensingthephysicalworldandcontrollingitfromacomputer.o Reilly smakeandcraft magazinesandblogssupportadiycommunitythatmakethingsthemselves,especially technology.instructablesisawebsiteforpostingstep by stepinstructionsonhowto makethingsyourself,includingtechnology. Craftispossiblytheoldestfieldthatsignifiestheimportanceofmakingthingsaswellas therelevanceof handmade objects.relevantwritingsoncraftincludewilliammorris, DavidPye,PeterDormerandMalcolmMcCullough. AsanemergingdisciplineE Textilesisagreatexampleforillustratinghowtakinganew materialapproachtobuildingelectronicsshapesthelookandfeelofresultingartifacts. RehmiPostandMaggieOrth[Orthetal.,1998]didmuchpioneeringworkattheMedia Labinvestigatingconductivetextilestoproduceconductivetracesandsensorstobe usedinwearabletechnology.morerecentlye textilekitsarealsofindingtheirwayinto educationanddiycommunities,allowingindividualstobuildtheirowne textile projects.e textilekitsincludethelilypadarduino[buechley&eisenbery,2009],the Teeboard[Nagaietal.,2009]andtheFabrickit[Papadopoulos&Eveland2010].This personalpracticeofe textiles,facilitatedthroughkits,hadresultedinanewcommunity ofindividualsbuildingandthinkingaboutelectronics[buechley,2010].myown previousworkissituatedinthefieldofe textilesandincludesalibraryofhandcrafted textilesensors[fig.1]andanonlinedatabaseofdiye textiletechniques[17]. Figure1.Imagesoftextilesensorsmadefromconductiveandresistivefabrics,threadsandyarns. fromlefttoright)crochetpotentiometers,fabrictiltsensor,neoprenebendsensor,stitchedstrokesensor. 5

6 PROBLEM Thetrendtoblack boxtechnologyhasledtoarangeofproductsthatarevastly unintelligibleandinaccessibletousasendusers.wehaveceasedtoponder,letalone understand,theinnerworkingsofthedevicesweown.weexpressourselvesthrough thetechnologiesweuse,andarelimitedbywhatisonoffer.inordertocustomizeour deviceswebuyskinsandapplystickersbutwedon tapproachthecustomizationofour technologiesasmakers. Whilethekit of partsapproachtobuildingelectronicsfromaselectionofdiscrete componentsallowsustoquicklyandefficientlyiteratethroughaseriesofsolutions,this approachultimatelyinfluences,impactsandconstrainshowwebuildelectronicsand thekindsofelectronicartifactswebuild. Craftisanapproachtobuildingthatreliesheavilyontheskill,knowledgeandmanual dexterityofanindividualcraftspersontowork raw materialsintoresultingartifacts.in thecraftprocessthereismuchroomforlearningandinterpretingmaterialproperties andapplyingthisunderstandinginordertoworkthematerialsintotheirdesiredform. Crafthascometoembracetechnologyasatoolbutwehavenotyetfullyexploredthe affordancesofapplyingthecraftprocessinorderto crafttechnology. Research Question InthespiritofE Textiles,howcanwecontinuetocraftelectronicsfromamorediverse paletteofmaterialsandtoolsinordertopromoteastyleofbuildingelectronicsthatis moreexpressive,morediverseandmoreintelligibletotheuserthanassemblingwithin asystemofparts? APPROACH Inordertobreakfromstandardizedproductionprocessesandthekit of partsapproach tobuildingiproposeakit of No Parts.TheKit of No Partsapproachallowsforrich understandingsanddesignexplorationsthatconstructionkitsofpre manufactured partscannotoffer.ratherthanconsistingofselectcomponentsandconfinedtoa system,thekit of No Partsismadeupofrecipesthatallowustoworkwithawide rangeofrawmaterialsandexistingcomponents,eliminatingtheneedforstandardsas wellasthinkingintermsofdiscreteparts. Figure2.IllustrationoftheKit of No Partsapproach. 6

7 AKit of No Partsallowsustocreateelectronicsthataremateriallydiverse,functionally transparentandexpressive[fig.2]. Acontinuousprocessofbuildingelectronics,oflearningandapplyingknowledge, standsincontrasttocurrentapproacheswheretasksaredividedandknowledgeis distributedandpackagedindiscretepartsthatcantheneasilybeassembled[fig.3left]. Craftisaskilledprocess,inwhichmaterialsaredirectlymanipulatedunderthecontrol ofthecraftsperson,assuchitisacontinuousprocessofacquiringandapplyingskills, tailoredanddrivenbythequalitiesandpropertiesofmaterials.asdescribedbyhelen Reesinherquotecitedintheintroduction, craftedartifactsrevealmuchabouttheskill andtechnologyusedtomakethem.ibelievethatbyapplyingacontinuousapproachto craftingelectronicstheresultingartifactswillbeequallytransparentandmoreeasily understoodbytheuser[fig.3right]. Figure3.left)Illustrationofdifferentprocessofmaking.right)IllustrationoftheKit of No Partsapproach, highlightingthecontinuousprocess. The Kit-of-No-Parts Circuitsaremadeupofcomponentsthatincludeaprocessor,memory,input(sensors), output(actuators)andtheconnectionsbetweenthesecomponents(traces).withinthe scopeofmythesisiwanttofocusonsensors,actuatorsandtraces,asillustratedin Figure4.Althoughthisselectionmightinitiallyappearasomewhatconfined,takinga lookatthefieldofe textilesrevealsthatsuchafocusallowsforahugevarietyand diversityinprocessandoutcome. Figure4.IllustrationofmyfocuswithintheKit of No Partsapproach. 7

8 InordertobetterdemonstratethefocusillustratedinFigure4thefollowingimages [Fig.5]showadiversevarietyofcircuitryandsensorsmadefromaKit of No Parts. Figure5.Examplesofcircuitsbuiltfromadiversepaletteofmaterialsandtools.toprow)Woodandvinylcutcoppertape.middlerow)paperandconductivepaint.bottomrow)Laserengravedwood,conductive paintandepoxy. Hypotheses TheKit of No Partsapproachtobuildingcircuitsresultsinelectronicartifactsthatare morediverse,transparentandindividual. Material Diversity Themakerhasmorecontroloverthematerialsandtoolsthanwithstandardized productionprocesses. Functional Transparency Theprocessismoreintuitiveandunderstandablethanassemblingthepartsofakit. Expressivity AKit of No Partsallowsforgreatercustomizationandpersonalexpression. 8

9 DELIVERABLES Figure6summarizesthedeliverablesIwillproduce,startingwithdevelopingKit of No Partsrecipes,documentingthemonawebsite,organizingtwoworkshopsand evaluatingtheresultingartifacts. Figure6.Illustrationsummarizingthestagestorealizingmythesisproposal. Recipes InsupportoftheKit of No PartsapproachtobuildingelectronicsIwilldevelop,refine anddocumentrecipesforbuildingsensors,actuatorsandtraces.irefinegoodrecipes throughaprocessofsourcingmaterials,testingtheirelectricalproperties,designing solutions,buildingsamples,testingtheseanddocumentingeverything.therecipeswill bestructuredsuchthattheydonotdocumentcompletecircuits,thattheysolvepieces orsubparts.therecipesareintendedtoberesourcescontainingvaluableinformation thataidthebuilderinrealizingtheirdesigns,notininformingthedesignsthemselves. Whiletherecipesofferdetailedinformation,listingandspecifyingingredients (materialsandtools),theydosoinordertohandovercontroltothemaker,ratherthan constrainthem.themoreinformationthemakerhas,themoretheyareabletomake informeddecisionsthatcandifferfromtherecipestheyinitiallymighttakeaslearning opportunities.whilefollowingrecipesstrictlymightinitiallyaidpeopleinthelearning process,allowingthemtodeveloptheirowntacitknowledgeofthematerialsandtools, ideallytheywilltransitiontocallingupontherecipesasreferenceresourcesandideally alsocontributingrecipesoftheirown. Instructuringmyapproachtoconceivingofrecipesthatwillallowustoworkwitha newsetofmaterialsandtoolsihavemappedoutaspace[fig.7right]ofselect conductivematerialsandtoolprocessesthatihavechosentostartwith.thismapping willaidmeinmaintaininganoverviewofthematerials,toolsandconstraints(focus: sensors,actuators,traces)thatiwillbeworkingwith. ThetechniquesIplantodevelopandwrite upasrecipesinvolvenewmaterial combinations,newworkflowsandnewuseoftools.techniquesthati minterestedto furtherexplore,derivedfrommyinitialexplorationsofthedesignspace,include: Havingtheshapesofnaturalobjects,suchasseashellsandplantparts,influenceand informthedesignoftheelectronics.thisapproachmightincluderecipesforcopper platingandadheringcomponentstonaturalobjects(examplesofcopperplatedshells andleavesalreadyexistinjewelry). 9

10 Theinclusionofcommonconductiveobjectssuchasnails,paperclips,sodacansand coal.recipesheremightincludesolutionstomakingconnectionsbetweenvarious metals,shapesandsurfaces. Beingabletosculptthree dimensionalcircuits.solutionsheremightinvolverecipes thatdescribeworkingwithaconductiveclay likematerial(metalclayexistsinjewelry andthesilverparticlesintheclaybecomesfusedandconductuponfiring)orbeingable tochiselawayatablockofconductivematerial. Figure7.left)Illustrationdepictingtheframeworkforrecipes.right)Exampleofthestep by step documentationofarecipe,inthiscaseofaneoprenebendsensor. Website Therecipeswillbedocumentedonawebsiteinenoughdetailsothattheycanbe replicatedbynovices.documentationwillincludedetailedwrittenhow toinstructions, step by stepphotographsandvideos,diagrams,templates,linkstoresourcesandcode whereapplicable.thewebsitewillserveassupportfortheworkshopaswellasa resourceforindividualsinterestedinlearningthetechniques. Workshops Iwillorganizeandadvertisea2 dayworkshopand,dependingonhowdemandingthe recipesthatidevelopare,acceptamaximumof5 10participants.Theworkshopwillbe advertisedunderageneralthemeinordertoallowparticipantstocomeupwithalarge varietyofprojectideas.theworkshopwillintroduceparticipantstothekit of No Parts approachbyintroducingthemtotherecipesdocumentedonthewebsite.overthe courseoftwodays,participantswillbuildtheirownelectronicartifacts.iwilldocument theprocessthroughphotographs,questionnairesandwrittenobservations. EVALUATION Inordertogatherinformationaboutworkshopparticipants backgrounds,their previousexperienceswithmakingthings(bothelectronicsandother),theirexperience duringtheworkshopandhowtheworkshopimpactedtheirviews,approachesand understandingofelectronicsandelectronicartifacts,iwillhandoutcouhesapproved preandpostworkshopquestionnaires.inevaluatingthekit of No PartsapproachIwill 10

11 primarilylookatthequestionnaires,thedocumentationandtheworkshopresults.iwill evaluatetheartifactsfrombothworkshopsusingthethreepointsoutlinedbymy hypothesis. Material Diversity Areweabletobuildelectronicsfromanewanddifferentsetofmaterialsthan previously?dotheresultingartifactsshowagreatervarietyinmaterials,colors,shapes, texturesandfunctionalities? Functional Transparency Istheprocessmoreintuitiveandunderstandablethanassemblingstandardparts?What doparticipantsunderstandoftheprocessandtechnologiesinvolvedintheprocess? Howmuchmore transparent andunderstandable(ifatall)areartifactsresultingfrom thekit of No Partsapproach?Cansomebodyexaminingtheartifactanddiscernmore aboutitsfunctionalitythantheycouldofasimilarcommercialproduct? Expressivity DoestheKit of No Partsallowforgreatercustomization?Areparticipantsabletobuild artifactsthatwouldnotbeabletobuildotherwise?whatkindsofthingsdotheybuild? Inwhatways(ifatall)dotheyfeellimited? RESOURCES IndevelopingthetechniquesandproducingexampleartifactsIwillmakeuseofexisting MediaLabresourcesthatmayincludetheHigh LowTech[8]andFabLab[5]inventories aswellasscreen printing,castingandkilnfiringfacilities. TIME-FRAME DELIVERABLE NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY RESEARCH X RECIPES X X X WEBSITE X X X X X WORKSHOP X EVALUATION X X WRITING X X 11

12 REFERENCES 1. A.Pugin,TheTruePrincipalsofChristianArchitecture(London,H.G.Bohn,1853) 2. CristenTorrey,ElizabethF.Churchill,andDavidW.McDonald, Learninghow:thesearchforcraft knowledgeontheinternet, inproceedingsofthe27thinternationalconferenceonhumanfactorsin computingsystems(boston,ma,usa:acm,2009), DanielaK.Rosner, Mediatedcrafts:digitalpracticesaroundcreativehandwork, inproceedingsofthe 28thoftheinternationalconferenceextendedabstractsonHumanfactorsincomputingsystems (Atlanta,Georgia,USA:ACM,2010), DavidPye,TheNatureandArtofWorkmanship,Revised.(FoxChapelPublishing,1995). 5. FabLabtoolinventory: 6. GraceNgaietal., TheTeeBoard:aneducation friendlyconstructionplatformfore textilesand wearablecomputing, inproceedingsofthe27thinternationalconferenceonhumanfactorsin computingsystems(boston,ma,usa:acm,2009), HandcraftingTextileInterfacesfromaKit of No Parts(Accepted,tobepublished,TEI2011) 8. High LowTechinventory: 9. JaySilver, Awakeningtomakermethodology:themetamorphosisofacuriouscaterpillar, in Proceedingsofthe8thInternationalConferenceonInteractionDesignandChildren(Como,Italy:ACM, 2009), Kit of parts: of parts 11. LeahBuechleyandMichaelEisenberg, FabricPCBs,electronicsequins,andsocketbuttons:techniques fore textilecraft, PersonalUbiquitousComput.13,no.2(2009): MaggieOrth,RehmiPost,andEmilyCooper, Fabriccomputinginterfaces, inchi98conference summaryonhumanfactorsincomputingsystems CHI'98(presentedattheCHI98conference summary,losangeles,california,unitedstates,1998), MalcolmMcCullough,AbstractingCraft:ThePracticedDigitalHand(TheMITPress,1998). 14. MitchelResnickandBrianSilverman, Somereflectionsondesigningconstructionkitsforkids, in Proceedingsofthe2005conferenceonInteractiondesignandchildren(Boulder,Colorado:ACM, 2005), Papadopoulos&Eveland,Fabrickit,2010: 16. PeterDormer,TheCultureofCraft(ManchesterUniversityPress,1997). 17. Satomi&Perner Wilson,2010,HowToGetWhatYouWant: 18. SaulGreenbergandChesterFitchett, Phidgets:easydevelopmentofphysicalinterfacesthrough physicalwidgets, inproceedingsofthe14thannualacmsymposiumonuserinterfacesoftwareand technology(orlando,florida:acm,2001), YasminB.Kafaietal., Fröbel'sforgottengift:textileconstructionkitsaspathwaysintoplay,designand computation, inproceedingsofthe9thinternationalconferenceoninteractiondesignandchildren (Barcelona,Spain:ACM,2010),